"Once Bitten"

With so many killer builds coming out everyday, one can get admittedly jaded. Each and every day I stumble on something that is even more extreme. Now, before you think it takes an eight second fox body Mustang to get my blood pumping, that would not be the case. Show me a clean survivor, and I get equally charged up. Not because one is better than the other, but mainly because the wide variety of foxes out there still amaze me. I try my best to carry over that variety into the weekly features. As you scan through the cars we have done so far, I am proud to say there is a solid variety. I think this is one of the chief reasons the fox body Mustang has such a cult following. From open track, to drag race, to show cars, street/strip cars, Saleens, Cobras, etc. As time goes by, the days of seeing foxes as throw away track cars are coming to a close.

As your author was scoping out the pits of the Mod Motor Nationals in Memphis Tennessee, I spotted Chad Winfield's fox. Upon closer inspection, I was in love. The sheer build quality alone had my salivary glands working overtime. The fab work, the paint, and the engine bay were absolutely flawless. Looking over the car, it appeared to be a true '93 snake, and after confirmation from Chad that it was, I was hooked.

Yes, this eight second terror, is '93 Cobra #4076. I found myself wondering how much cool you could stuff into one car. Chad bought the car back in '04 when it was bone stock. She only had 34K miles on the clock, and was in pristine condition. Chad drove the car in stock form until '06, which is about the time the wheels in his head began to turn about building it. His initial plan was to terminator swap it, for a fun street car. As Chad planned out his build, more and more ideas came to mind about how he wanted it to look and run. The further he went with his ideas, the further from street car it went. We have all had those chin scratcher moments when we think: "Why not go all out". That would be exactly what Chad decided to do. The streetcar plan was axed, and he spent the next seven years transforming the car into the monster you see before here.

Not one to do things halfway, Chad dove into the Cobra head first. The car was stripped down to nearly a shell, and the prep began. Chad had no intentions of a quick build, it was going to be right, or not at all. Starting at the front, the engine bay was completely smoothed and painted. Now totally devoid of the fox body Mustang swiss cheese effect, the Cobra was ready for it's new power plant. Next on the list was a funny car style roll cage, which involved many a late night in the garage to complete. The final step for the chassis was to tuck some serious meat under the cobra, which meant a mini tub job was inevitable.

To be a true player, Chad knew his power game had to be tight. Accufab was enlisted to build a forged four valve as a solid basis to handle mega boost. The boost comes via a pro mod 88mm huffer from PTE. Big power, check. To cool all that boost, a PT3000 air to water intercooler was plumbed in to keep high AIT at bay. To keep all of this madness in check, a Big Stuff III ECM, and an AMS 2000 boost controller work in harmony to get the Cobra down the track. Trans duties are picked up by a fully built power glide, and a Pro Torque Gen X converter. Out back the narrowed 8.8 received bullet proof internals, and turbo friendly 3.55 gears.

After seven long years, Chad's vision is now a reality. Back in '15 the car made it's maiden voyage down the 1320, at Darlington Dragway. At the Mod Motor Nationals, Chad was battling some electrical gremlins with the engine management, but was finally able to get the car down the track, to the tune of 8.07 @180. This would be only his third trip down the strip since completion. It goes without saying that mid seven second potential is a reality. We will be following Chad's progress closely, and can't wait to see just how fast this car will go. CR